Duke defeated No. 2 seed Alabama 85-65 on Saturday, advancing to the national semifinals in Texas. The Blue Devils’ 18th Final Four appearance will be their first under coach Jon Scheyer since taking over in 2022.
Kon Knueppel led Duke with 21 points, while Cooper Flagg finished with 16 points and nine rebounds. Labaron Philon had 16 points for Alabama.
Coach Nate Oats described his team’s performance as a “regression to the mean” after setting an NCAA tournament record with 25 three-pointers in their previous game against BYU. However, it was Duke that limited Alabama to 26 points below its average and 48 points fewer than it scored on Thursday.
The Blue Devils’ superior size and physicality caused problems for Alabama throughout the game. Knueppel and Proctor consistently got into the lane, and Flagg drove coast-to-coast for an easy layup late in the first half.
Duke used its bench more effectively this time around, with Caleb Foster seeing nine minutes in the first half and Isaiah Evans playing six minutes apiece against Alabama’s fast-paced and deep team. The Blue Devils won the battle around the rim, outscoring Alabama 40-28.
Coach Scheyer praised his team’s performance, saying they were “incredibly connected” and “disciplined.” He also credited his players for their resiliency and teamwork.
Duke will now face another top-ranked opponent in the semifinals, with Scheyer cementing his legacy as a coach at Duke after leading his own team to the Final Four for the first time since taking over in 2022.
Source: https://www.espn.com/mens-college-basketball/story/_/id/44462291/duke-strolls-alabama-secures-final-four-berth